Is Singapore the next Montreal of games development?

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LucasArts claims big industry players will migrate to Asian city state and build new studios

A few years ago, Montreal and Vancouver were some of the unheralded games development hubs, hidden in Canada. Fast forward to today and the two are acknowledged as major forces in games, aided by government support and the presence of global giants in the city.

According to LucasArts, Singapore is destined for similar greatness as more and more Western games companies look to establish a foothold in the East.

Speaking to us in our series of Asian Domination features, head of the games team at Lucasfilm, Fergus Carrol likened Singapore to "Vancouver or Montreal ten to fifteen years ago", saying it was on the cusp of greatness.

"A few big studios move in, import experienced talent, train local junior talent, and make some great games. Over time the teams gain more knowledge of how the industry works, and how games get made. Eventually there are studios with regional talents producing products for the global market, and so the industry grows," he told us. "I see no reason why Singapore would not continue to evolve in this way."

Lucasfilm is one of a clutch of companies establishing games teams in the relatively small city state - although the region has yet to produce a game that is known as 'developed in Singapore' and has succeeded on the global stage. However that will change with the release of LucasArts' Clone Wars game, said Carroll.

"EA has been here for a number of years, and is expanding. Ubisoft just moved in and are expanding. We’ve been here since 2005 and already there is an awareness that games get made in Singapore. However, I’m sure the Clone Wars movie, TV series and game will all add to that growing awareness."